Millions of transactions occur daily through the use of payment cards, such as credit cards, debit cards, prepaid cards, etc. Corresponding records of the transactions are recorded in databases for settlement and financial record keeping (e.g., to meet the requirements of government regulations). Such data can be analyzed for trends, statistics, and other analyses. Sometimes, such data are mined for specific advertising goals, such as to provide targeted offers to account holders, as described in PCT Pub. No. WO 2008/067543 A2, published on Jun. 5, 2008 and entitled “Techniques for Targeted Offers,” which is hereby incorporated herein by reference.
In some cases, coupons (e.g., physical coupons distributed in published magazines with accompanying advertisements) may be used in some of these transactions. These coupons are typically targeted to individual consumers and offer a one-time discount for a single purchase of a good or service. However, consumers often view such coupons as being mundane or dull, and generating significant consumer interest in the coupons is frequently challenging to product marketers.
In other cases, a local community engaging in transactions desires to promote businesses that are located within a defined city or other local region. This is due in part to a growing interest in promoting the consumption of locally-produced products. However, it continues to be difficult for a community to retain income that is earned locally by having or encouraging that income to be spent locally. Some communities have experimented with the use of local currencies to accomplish this result. However, the use of such currencies may raise legal issues and also may increase the risk of inducing localized inflation or deflation.